New Delhi: India has called off the Indo-Pak maritime security dialogue it was to host next week, in the backdrop of tensions arising over the death sentence to Kulbhushan Jadhav on charges of spying in Pakistan.
Minister of State for External Affairs V K Singh said India is taking all measures to gain consular access to Jadhav, a former Indian Navy officer, despite Pakistan denying it “13 times”.
Singh said, the government is trying everything to get access to Jadhav.
Singh maintained that Jadhav was abducted from Iran. A Pakistan military court had on April 10 sentenced Jadhav to death in a secret trial for alleged involvement in “espionage and sabotage activities” in restive Balochistan and Karachi.
According to the Vienna Convention, the State which detains a national of another country must allow consular officers of the other country to access the detainee.
India had on Friday said it would appeal against the death sentence and demanded from Pakistan a certified copy of the charge-sheet as well as the army court order in the case, besides seeking consular access to the retired Indian navy officer.
A delegation of the Pakistan Maritime Security Agency (PMSA) was to visit New Delhi on April 16-19 to discuss issues related to fishermen of both the countries, who are arrested for trespassing, and search and rescue operations with the Indian Coast Guard.
Coast Guard sources said the Ministry of Defence has not given clearance for the delegation’s visit.
The development comes amid tensions between the two countries over Jadhav, a former Indian naval officer, being awarded death sentence by a Pakistani military court. India has said if Jadhav were to be executed, it will be considered as a “premeditated murder”.
As per an MoU signed between maritime security agencies of India and Pakistan in 2006, coast guard delegations of the two countries would visit each other every year.
Last July, a three-member delegation of the Indian Coast Guard, headed by Director General Rajendra Singh, had visited Pakistan to discuss maritime issues between the two countries.
“This was to be a reciprocal visit by a delegation of PMSA headed by their DG,” a senior Coast Guard official said.
Meanwhile, the Congress on Saturday said it stood with the government on Kulbhushan Jadhav’s sentencing by Pakistan and there can be no politics on it as the judicial process adopted by the neighbouring country lacks credibility.
“It has been said in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha that in the matter of Kulbhushan Jadhav there can be no politics. We believe that the whole judicial proceedings under which he has been sentenced in Pakistan do not inspire any confidence, do not have any credibility. Consular access has been denied 13 times,” Congress spokesperson Jairam Ramesh said.
The Congress leader said India stood together on the issue. (PTI)
